August 29, 2017
Today, City Council approved Breathe: Edmonton’s Green Network Strategy replacing the existing Urban Parks Management Plan.
Over the past year, extensive analysis and community input have helped to shape the Breathe Strategy, which will guide future planning for parks and open space, ensuring all neighbourhoods are supported by high-quality, accessible, connected open spaces.
Breathe marks a significant shift in how we think of and manage our public spaces by:
- using a network approach to open space planning that will support integrated land use planning and growth coordination ensuring the best use of public land;
- providing a broader definition of open space that includes not just municipally owned parks but also other publicly accessible places, including natural areas, squares and plazas, pedestrian streets and provincial parkland;
- changing the primary focus from supply (quantity) of open space to a better understanding of how open spaces are functioning from a perspective of quality, diversity and distribution;
- using a data-driven approach that helps us understand what functions open spaces are providing and should provide given the community context
Next steps include development of an implementation plan to provide further detail about actions required to achieve the vision outlined in the strategy.
Interested in staying involved? Check the
website
for opportunities to engage on future Breathe projects or follow us on twitter
#BreatheYEG
